Mental Health Nursing: cram pack

Formula sheets, the key method steps for every topic and 6 practice problems, with full solutions at the back.

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1Formulas and methods

Mental health nursing

Method

  1. Decide whether there is an immediate risk: suicide, violence, a drug emergency or a physical illness.
  2. Act on safety first: observe, remove means, de-escalate, stop a harmful drug, get help.
  3. Choose the therapeutic response: acknowledge feelings, present reality, avoid false reassurance and “why” questions.
  4. Respect rights: the least restrictive option, consent and confidentiality with its limits.

2Practice problems

1.Mental health nursingMedium

How should a nurse screen a patient for intimate partner violence?

  1. AAsk the partner instead of the patient
  2. BAsk in front of the partner to see how he reacts
  3. CAsk in private, without the partner or family present
  4. DOnly ask patients who have visible injuries
2.Mental health nursingHard

A woman with a severe intellectual disability and limited speech has started hitting her face and refusing food. What should the nurse consider first?

  1. AA physical cause such as dental pain, an ear infection or constipation
  2. BThat the behaviour is part of her disability and needs no assessment
  3. CThat she needs an antipsychotic to control her behaviour
  4. DThat she is trying to manipulate the staff
3.Clinical psychologyMedium

Which defence mechanism is shown when someone with strong hostile feelings towards a colleague acts in an excessively friendly way towards them?

  1. AReaction formation
  2. BDenial
  3. CDisplacement
  4. DRationalisation
4.Clinical psychologyHard

An interview that follows a fixed set of questions in a fixed order to reach a diagnosis is called:

  1. AA structured clinical interview
  2. BA projective test
  3. CA free association session
  4. DAn unstructured interview
5.PharmacologyMedium

Which assessment is most important during IV mannitol therapy?

  1. ABlood glucose before meals and signs of hypoglycaemia
  2. BPlatelet count and signs of bleeding
  3. CUrine output, electrolytes and signs of fluid overload
  4. DLiver enzymes and signs of jaundice
6.PharmacologyHard

A breastfeeding mother needs a mild analgesic. Which drug is generally considered compatible with breastfeeding?

  1. AAspirin
  2. BPethidine (meperidine)
  3. CCodeine (as co-codamol)
  4. DParacetamol (acetaminophen)

3Solutions

1.Mental health nursing

Answer: C · Ask in private, without the partner or family present

Why this is the answer

Screening should be done privately, using direct, non-judgemental questions. Abuse occurs in all groups, so routine screening is better than asking only those with obvious injuries.

Answer

C · Ask in private, without the partner or family present
2.Mental health nursing

Answer: A · A physical cause such as dental pain, an ear infection or constipation

Why this is the answer

People with limited communication may show pain or illness through changes in behaviour. A thorough physical assessment comes before deciding the behaviour is psychiatric or behavioural.

Answer

A · A physical cause such as dental pain, an ear infection or constipation
3.Clinical psychology

Answer: A · Reaction formation

Why this is the answer

Reaction formation turns an unacceptable impulse into its opposite, often in an exaggerated form.

Answer

A · Reaction formation
4.Clinical psychology

Answer: A · A structured clinical interview

Why this is the answer

Structured interviews such as the SCID ask standard questions tied to diagnostic criteria, increasing reliability compared with unstructured interviews.

Answer

A · A structured clinical interview
5.Pharmacology

Answer: C · Urine output, electrolytes and signs of fluid overload

Why this is the answer

Mannitol draws fluid into the circulation before it is excreted, which can cause heart failure and pulmonary oedema. The large diuresis can cause dehydration and electrolyte imbalance, so output and electrolytes are monitored.

Answer

C · Urine output, electrolytes and signs of fluid overload
6.Pharmacology

Answer: D · Paracetamol (acetaminophen)

Why this is the answer

Paracetamol passes into milk in small amounts and is widely regarded as safe. Codeine can cause dangerous opioid levels in babies of ultra-rapid metaboliser mothers, aspirin carries a Reye's risk and pethidine's metabolite accumulates in infants.

Answer

D · Paracetamol (acetaminophen)

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